1860s Today in Labor History March 7, 1860: 6,000 shoemakers and 20,000 other New England workers participated in a mass strike in Lynn, Massachusetts, also known as the great New England Shoemakers Strike. It was the largest U.S. strike prior to the Civil War. Thousands of women marched through a blizzard carrying signs saying: “American […]

Today in Labor History March 5 Today in Labor History March 5, 1770: The Boston Massacre took place.  British soldiers, living in colonists’ homes, started taking jobs from local workers. Angered, rope makers started provoking the British soldiers, who fired at and killed Crispus Attucks, a multiethnic colonist. They went on to kill 4 others.

Today in Labor History March 2, 1657: The Great Fire of Meireki began in Edo (now Tokyo). Over 100,000 died in the fire. It destroyed 70% of Edo. Legend says that a priest started the fire accidentally by cremating a cursed kimono. Hurricane-force winds fanned the flames, helping them quickly spread through the city. Laura

Today in Labor History March 1, 1798: U.S. printers went on strike. 1800s Today in Labor History March 1, 1871: The victorious Prussian Army paraded through Paris after the Siege of Paris. Three weeks later, on March 18, radical soldiers from the French National Guard seized control of the city and established the Paris Commune.

Today in Labor History February 28, 1525: Hernan Cortes executed Cuauhtémoc , king of the Aztecs. Bernal Diaz del Castillo wrote in his journal that it was an unjust execution, that there was no evidence the Cuauhtémoc was plotting against Cortes. Cuauhtémoc said, through his interpreter, La Malinche, “Now I understand your false promises and the kind of